Waikato BOP Harness 17 August 2017 – R 7 – Chair, Mr A Dooley
ID: JCA12379
Meet Title:
Harness Racing Waikato - 17 August 2017
Meet Chair:
ADooley
Meet Committee Member 1:
AGodsalve
Race Date:
2017/08/17
Race Number:
R7
Decision:
As Ms Chilcott admitted the breach the Committee found the charge proved.
Penalty:
Accordingly, Ms Chilcott was fined the sum of $400.
Facts:
Following the running of race 7, BNZ Matamata Handicap Trot, an Information was filed pursuant to Rule 1002 (1)(b) and Programme Conditions – General Regulations Clause 15 (a)(i) & (b). The Informant, Mr Muirhead, alleged that Ms Chilcott failed to ensure SHAY SCOTT was available with an attendant in the official stabling complex at least 90 minutes prior to the advertised starting time and/or that she removed SHAY SCOTT from the course prior to its engagement in Race 7.
Ms Chilcott acknowledged that she understood the Rule and confirmed that she admitted the breach.
Ms Chilcott had no objection for this charge being heard on the evening and she did not wish to seek any advice.
Rule 1002 (1) (b) provides: Every person commits a breach of these Rules who: (b) acts in contravention of or fails to comply with any provision of these Rules or any Regulations made thereunder, or any notice, direction, instruction, restriction, requirement or condition given, made or imposed under these Rules;
PROGRAMMING CONDITIONS - GENERAL
The following regulation is made by the Board pursuant to the Rules of Harness Racing.
Clause 15: Racemeeting Attendance:
(a) The trainer of any horse engaged in any race at a totalisator race meeting shall ensure that such horse is available with an attendant in the official stabling complex (or in its allocated stall).
(i) at least one hour prior to the advertised starting time of the first race of the meeting where it is entered in that race, or, if entered in a subsequent race, at least ninety minutes prior to the advertised starting time of the race;
(b) A horse shall not be removed from the racecourse until after the race it is engaged in has been completed.
Mr Muirhead advised the Committee that SHAY SCOTT was a dual acceptor in race 1 at 5.39pm and race 7 at 8.11 pm. He said the Stewards had instructed the Veterinarian, Mr M Brightwell, to inspect 2 horses that were dual acceptors in race 7. He said at about 7pm Mr Brightwell advised the Stewards that it had been established that Ms Chilcott had taken SHAY SCOTT back to her stables which were close the racecourse. Mr Van Kan confirmed that SHAY SCOTT was not available with an attendant in the official stabling complex 90 minutes prior to the race. Consequently, Mr Muirhead rang Ms Chilcott to ascertain why she had removed SHAY SCOTT from the racecourse.
Mr Muirhead said at approximately 7.15 pm Ms Chilcott returned SHAY SCOTT to the official stabling complex. Mr Muirhead told Mr Brightwell to carry out a check on the horse. The Stewards were concerned that Ms Chilcott had removed SHAY SCOTT from the racecourse prior to completing and engagement and she was late presenting SHAY SCOTT at the prescribed time. Mr Muirhead advised Ms Chilcott that Mr Brightwell was required to complete a pre-race check on SHAY SCOTT because the horse needed to be cleared to start in race 7. Mr Muirhead told Ms Chilcott that it was a breach of the Rules to remove a horse from the racecourse and although the Stewards were not suggesting that there was any impropriety there was potential for that in this case. He said that SHAY SCOTT was late scratched at 7.45 pm by order of the Stewards under Rule 213(1)(h).
Ms Chilcott freely admitted that she made a mistake and stated that she had no idea of the Rules and Regulations pursuant to this breach and was “gobsmacked” when the Stewards told her. She told the Committee that she brought SHAY SCOTT to the races with another horse who was entered in the Qualifying Trial before race 1. She said that SHAY SCOTT had been on course for quite a while so she elected to take the horse back to her stables after race 1 and put him in his box and give SHAY SCOTT a feed. She thought that she had to be back on course 60 minutes and not 90 minutes prior to the start time of race 7. She reiterated that she had no idea that SHAY SCOTT was not permitted to leave the track and was trying to be kind to the horse when taking him home for a feed. Ms Chilcott added that she had never lined up a horse twice in a day before and recognised that the Stewards had to scratch SHAY SCOTT and she was disappointed for her owners and accepted the blame.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Muirhead said that prior to the introduction of the JCA a breach of this Rule had a starting point of a $500 fine. He said the Stewards believed that sum would be appropriate for this charge. He said there was no suggestion of any impropriety but the fact that Ms Chilcott removed SHAY SCOTT from the course was a contravention of the Rules and is a serious matter. He added that public perception is paramount in this case.
Ms Chilcott submitted that she made a mistake and had no idea about the Rule. She said there was no intent or anything untoward on her part and she believed that a $500 fine would be an excessive penalty.
Reasons for Penalty:
The Committee carefully considered all the evidence and submissions presented.
The JCA Penalty Guide has no starting point for this Rule and there has been no precedent for this type of breach. Therefore the Committee adopted Mr Muirhead’s recommendation of a $500 fine as a starting point.
The aggravating factors were the consequential effects of Ms Chilcott’s actions resulted in the betting public which had invested on SHAY SCOTT in the Quaddie and Pick 6 were adversely effected, the Clubs turnover on race 7 would have suffered as a result of the horse being declared a late scratching and the connections of SHAY SCOTT were denied the opportunity to earn additional prizemoney on the night. The Committee note that SHAY SCOTT won race 1 this evening.
The Committee accepts that there appeared to be no intent by Ms Chilcott and there was no evidence of anything untoward occurring when SHAY SCOTT was removed from the racecourse. However, the need to maintain integrity and public confidence in Harness Racing is imperative and cases like this although exceptionally rare certainly raise some questions regarding integrity. In our view all License Holders have an obligation to be conversant with the Rules and the Regulations.
The mitigating factors were Ms Chilcott’s admission of the breach, albeit inevitable given the substantial evidence and her clear record under this Rule.
After taking into all the above factors the Committee considered that an appropriate penalty was a $400 fine.
JCA Decision Fields (raw)
Dmitry: This section contains all JCA fields migrated from the raw data.
Data from these fields should be mapped appropriately to display amongst the standard fields above; please make note of any values below that are missing in the above standard fields but should be there.
hearingid: 5581aa2cb47ef1c9f4170c724a65578b
informantnumber: A2627
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Failed to present SHAY SCOTT by the required time
plea: admitted
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 21/08/2017
hearing_title: Waikato BOP Harness 17 August 2017 - R 7 - Chair, Mr A Dooley
charge:
facts:
Following the running of race 7, BNZ Matamata Handicap Trot, an Information was filed pursuant to Rule 1002 (1)(b) and Programme Conditions – General Regulations Clause 15 (a)(i) & (b). The Informant, Mr Muirhead, alleged that Ms Chilcott failed to ensure SHAY SCOTT was available with an attendant in the official stabling complex at least 90 minutes prior to the advertised starting time and/or that she removed SHAY SCOTT from the course prior to its engagement in Race 7.
Ms Chilcott acknowledged that she understood the Rule and confirmed that she admitted the breach.
Ms Chilcott had no objection for this charge being heard on the evening and she did not wish to seek any advice.
Rule 1002 (1) (b) provides: Every person commits a breach of these Rules who: (b) acts in contravention of or fails to comply with any provision of these Rules or any Regulations made thereunder, or any notice, direction, instruction, restriction, requirement or condition given, made or imposed under these Rules;
PROGRAMMING CONDITIONS - GENERAL
The following regulation is made by the Board pursuant to the Rules of Harness Racing.
Clause 15: Racemeeting Attendance:
(a) The trainer of any horse engaged in any race at a totalisator race meeting shall ensure that such horse is available with an attendant in the official stabling complex (or in its allocated stall).
(i) at least one hour prior to the advertised starting time of the first race of the meeting where it is entered in that race, or, if entered in a subsequent race, at least ninety minutes prior to the advertised starting time of the race;
(b) A horse shall not be removed from the racecourse until after the race it is engaged in has been completed.
Mr Muirhead advised the Committee that SHAY SCOTT was a dual acceptor in race 1 at 5.39pm and race 7 at 8.11 pm. He said the Stewards had instructed the Veterinarian, Mr M Brightwell, to inspect 2 horses that were dual acceptors in race 7. He said at about 7pm Mr Brightwell advised the Stewards that it had been established that Ms Chilcott had taken SHAY SCOTT back to her stables which were close the racecourse. Mr Van Kan confirmed that SHAY SCOTT was not available with an attendant in the official stabling complex 90 minutes prior to the race. Consequently, Mr Muirhead rang Ms Chilcott to ascertain why she had removed SHAY SCOTT from the racecourse.
Mr Muirhead said at approximately 7.15 pm Ms Chilcott returned SHAY SCOTT to the official stabling complex. Mr Muirhead told Mr Brightwell to carry out a check on the horse. The Stewards were concerned that Ms Chilcott had removed SHAY SCOTT from the racecourse prior to completing and engagement and she was late presenting SHAY SCOTT at the prescribed time. Mr Muirhead advised Ms Chilcott that Mr Brightwell was required to complete a pre-race check on SHAY SCOTT because the horse needed to be cleared to start in race 7. Mr Muirhead told Ms Chilcott that it was a breach of the Rules to remove a horse from the racecourse and although the Stewards were not suggesting that there was any impropriety there was potential for that in this case. He said that SHAY SCOTT was late scratched at 7.45 pm by order of the Stewards under Rule 213(1)(h).
Ms Chilcott freely admitted that she made a mistake and stated that she had no idea of the Rules and Regulations pursuant to this breach and was “gobsmacked” when the Stewards told her. She told the Committee that she brought SHAY SCOTT to the races with another horse who was entered in the Qualifying Trial before race 1. She said that SHAY SCOTT had been on course for quite a while so she elected to take the horse back to her stables after race 1 and put him in his box and give SHAY SCOTT a feed. She thought that she had to be back on course 60 minutes and not 90 minutes prior to the start time of race 7. She reiterated that she had no idea that SHAY SCOTT was not permitted to leave the track and was trying to be kind to the horse when taking him home for a feed. Ms Chilcott added that she had never lined up a horse twice in a day before and recognised that the Stewards had to scratch SHAY SCOTT and she was disappointed for her owners and accepted the blame.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
reasonsfordecision:
Decision:
As Ms Chilcott admitted the breach the Committee found the charge proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Muirhead said that prior to the introduction of the JCA a breach of this Rule had a starting point of a $500 fine. He said the Stewards believed that sum would be appropriate for this charge. He said there was no suggestion of any impropriety but the fact that Ms Chilcott removed SHAY SCOTT from the course was a contravention of the Rules and is a serious matter. He added that public perception is paramount in this case.
Ms Chilcott submitted that she made a mistake and had no idea about the Rule. She said there was no intent or anything untoward on her part and she believed that a $500 fine would be an excessive penalty.
reasonsforpenalty:
The Committee carefully considered all the evidence and submissions presented.
The JCA Penalty Guide has no starting point for this Rule and there has been no precedent for this type of breach. Therefore the Committee adopted Mr Muirhead’s recommendation of a $500 fine as a starting point.
The aggravating factors were the consequential effects of Ms Chilcott’s actions resulted in the betting public which had invested on SHAY SCOTT in the Quaddie and Pick 6 were adversely effected, the Clubs turnover on race 7 would have suffered as a result of the horse being declared a late scratching and the connections of SHAY SCOTT were denied the opportunity to earn additional prizemoney on the night. The Committee note that SHAY SCOTT won race 1 this evening.
The Committee accepts that there appeared to be no intent by Ms Chilcott and there was no evidence of anything untoward occurring when SHAY SCOTT was removed from the racecourse. However, the need to maintain integrity and public confidence in Harness Racing is imperative and cases like this although exceptionally rare certainly raise some questions regarding integrity. In our view all License Holders have an obligation to be conversant with the Rules and the Regulations.
The mitigating factors were Ms Chilcott’s admission of the breach, albeit inevitable given the substantial evidence and her clear record under this Rule.
After taking into all the above factors the Committee considered that an appropriate penalty was a $400 fine.
penalty:
Accordingly, Ms Chilcott was fined the sum of $400.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 1002(1)(b) & Programming Conditions - General Clause 15
Informant: Mr J Muirhead - Senior Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Ms N Chilcott - Licensed Open Horsewoman
Otherperson:
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
raceid: d6e5390df8413832d3e18390a3a4f028
race_expapproval:
racecancelled: 0
race_noreport: 0
race_emailed1: 0
race_emailed2: 0
race_title: R7
submittochair:
race_expappcomment:
race_km:
race_otherexp:
race_chair:
race_pm1:
race_pm2:
meetid: e03b57ae5576a307149675e19b487683
meet_expapproval:
meet_noreport: 0
waitingforpublication: 0
meet_emailed1: 0
meet_emailed2: 0
meetdate: 17/08/2017
meet_title: Harness Racing Waikato - 17 August 2017
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: harness-racing-waikato
meet_racingtype: harness-racing
meet_chair: ADooley
meet_pm1: AGodsalve
meet_pm2: none
name: Harness Racing Waikato